Lynn Woods Relay

Dennis, I, Maggie, and Dawn

August 20, 2014
Dennis Floyd asked me if I would do the relay with him, Maggie Doben, and Dawn McGrath. Why not? It would be fun to be on a coed team - first time for me at the relay. The relay is 4 X 2.5 miles. I submitted the entry and team name of SpiderOne a week before the race. I led off with a 14:19 which put the team in 4th place overall - behind Greg Putnam and the Central Mass Striders team that also included Aaron Baldwin, Matt Veiga, and Dan Verrington. Maggie Doben got a course PR and handed off to Dennis. He picked up a few spots and handed off to Dawn McGrath who also set a course PR. At the end of the night, we scored a 2nd place showing in the coed division and 9th overall out of 100+ teams. I capped off the night with Krissy and the Wicked Running Club at Prince Pizza.

Level Renner 10K Brockton

August 17, 2014
The Level Renner 10K is beautiful two loop road course with rolling hills within D.W. Field Park in Brockton. 80% of the course is in the shade. CMS had more than seven men in the race including Nate Jenkins, Greg Putnam, Joe Shairs, Al Bernier (making his 40 year old debut), Jason Porter, and Scott Deslongchamps. We were gunning for the team prize money. Five scored this year as opposed to the three from last year. The start headed up the road passing the lookout tower. This hill is a beast as we encounter it two more times. I was with Jason Porter, Joe Shairs, and Robert Cipriano in the early miles. Al was about five seconds ahead and looking very strong after my 5:35 opening mile. I got a little room away from those guys about half way through. Al was not coming back as he built up 15 seconds on me. I recall going through mile 5 around 28:00. Robert passed me and caught Al with 800 meters to go. They had an envious battle up the last hill. Al stopped and dry heaved just after six miles. I urged him to get back in it - he did but lost time and three spots. Meanwhile, I had someone breathing down my neck - John Bigoutte from CT. He edged me at the very end. Joe was ten seconds back and Al was in behind him. My time was 34:52 for 10th - almost a minute quicker than last year. The team won but no team prize exchanged hands due to lack of teams. Race director, KG has to pay the bills which is fine by me. No problem as I picked up a Garmin GPS watch that went to Krissy's sister.

A mess upon finishing the Level Renner 10K

Full Results

KrissyK photos

Asbury Grove Duathlon - Hamilton

August 9, 2014

This is how I roll - about to jump into the run in Asbury Grove

The weekend was clear (free to race) and always wanted to do this duathlon (2.4 mile run, 9.0 mile bike, 2.4 mile run)from Asbury Grove. Roger Perham and Asbury Grove host the event. You can’t beat this event which cost just $10 (used to be $5). A little more thought in terms of preparation must go into an event like this from an athlete point of view. One must ensure all gear, bike, clothing, hydration, et cetera is in order. I really don’t know what I am doing out there so just went with the flow in terms of effort. In doing so, I led through the first run, 2.4 miles. – 13:24 and transitioned into my shoes to clip into the bike. Meanwhile, 2^nd place, Jeffrey Capoianco, flew past on his bike. I never saw him again as he traveled the next 9.7 miles (full bike distance) on the bike at a 24.4 mph clip. Pretty fast. The bike is not my strength and I don’t pretend. I just pedaled and assumed a few athletes would pass me. We biked past Bradley Palmer State Park, Willowdale, and Turner Hill. There were a few hills but not too bad. Two athletes did pass me and one included friend, Brett Rickenbach with a few miles to go before we would transition into the last 2.4 mile run. The bike portion took me 31:01 with an average speed of 18.8 mph (6^th overall). I reeled Brett in after a mile on the run taking over third place. I ran out of room but was gaining on second place, Shane Sherwood. I finished 3^rd overall (58:01) but again had the quickest time for that run (13:46). It was fun and hard at the same time. Meanwhile, Krissy finished her first ever duathlon. She rocked it. We had a nice pancake breakfast inside the Grove and then paid a visit with the Rich family. It was a good day and nice way to start the vacation.

Full Results

Squantum 5 mile road race Quincy

I broke out the blue Level Renner singlet for the 5 mile race around the corner from the office in the beautiful Marina Bay - Quincy. The race had a new calendar date in August in order to have a post-race venue. The race is usually held in June. The night was warm but lacked the humidity. I spoke with race director JJ Larner before the race to consult on the slight course adaptation to work around construction in Squantum Point Park. This would cut off about 1/10^th of a mile. Indeed, I measured out 4.92 miles on the GPS. I jumped out to 5:25 1^st mile – unchallenged chasing the police car that paved the way along the roads I frequently train on. I pressed as hard as possible solo which is hard in the hills of Squantum. I backed off the pace with 200m to go to make sure I did not break 27:29 which is my PR on the course and stay out of the top ten of the fastest times here. With the shortened course, I did not want the time to mistakenly get on that list. I took the win with a 27:37 on the 4.92 mile course. Another 10^th of a mile would provide a low 28 effort which is solid. The post-race venue at the Water Club, upstairs, in Marina Bay was welcomed. The view of the city of Boston skyline and sun going down with a pink sky was perfect to end the day. There were plenty of hops and hot dogs were available. I caught up with Michelle and Bob (age group award winner) from New England Runner. The household subscription is in Krissy’s name so I came clean that I am still supporting it. Full results